Under 35? Arlington, Texas second best city in US to live in.

[95DRGT]

I have to comment on the Movie Tavern. I rarely get to go to the movies, but we took our four year old there a couple of weeks ago on a Saturday night to see Big Hero 6 and I was expecting some trash even though it was a kids movie. My wife made a point to mention the fact that it was anything but. She knew I would be looking for reasons to bitch. I'm always the first to comment on how Arlington used to be or how such and such isn't the same. I'll find something. It was actually quite pleasant and as much as I wanted to find something wrong, even the bar and waiting areas were pretty normal. The cheap pitchers of Blood and Honey didn't hurt either.

I'll be the first to admit that some areas are in the toilet. No doubt about it. I grew up off of Arkansas and Carter. I took my dad down our old street one Saturday night after dinner and he was shocked. He also hadn't lived here since '97, so he hadn't got to see the decline. Hell, they're tearing down Hutcheson Jr. High. That school was the highlight of my education. I would do 7th-9th grade there all over again if I could.

I have to agree with Eric to an extent. The improvements they're making downtown are helping offset the shit. I don't know that enough could ever be done to reverse the decline, but I see it leveling off in the next five years if the effort continues.

I think my biggest disappointment lies in the south side. I knew the east side would go downhill because it was already happening in the early 90's, but it took 40 something years to get there. South of I20i was the place to be in the early-mid 90's and it only took ten years for it sour and it's creeping all the way down to Broad and 360, Matlock and Debbie Lane, and Cooper towards 287. We lived at that Broad and 360 when it was nothing but a middle school and our tiny little 3 street neighborhood behind it. It's a fucking zoo now. We left there to move back to west Arlington.

It obviously hits close to home for those of us that have spent most of our lives here. I have memories of growing up in this city that I wouldn't trade for anything. It's not what it was, and that stinks, but it's not so bad either. There are a lot of people here fighting to turn it around and downtown is an excellent indicator of that. I'm seeing a rejuvenation of sorts in the Green Oaks/ Little Rd. area as well. It took something silly like a Chick Fil A and a Sprouts, but the change is undeniable.

I agree pretty much Jimmy. I didn't grow up here as a kid but as a young adult to an old guy. Moved here in 83 to go to UTA and lived off Oak St behind Woodys Pawn Shop. There were 2 murders in 6 months near there so I moved to Mansfield which was nothing like it is today. The biggest attraction was the Cowbell Rodeo. In the late 80's I moved back to SW Arlington and have lived off 20 north ans south of Little Rd/287 area for 25 years. I would say it's one of nicer areas and has been pretty consistent over the years except when Walmart came to our area a few years back. That brought an element into the area from Everman and East Fort Worth that was never in the area and some decline. Overall I'm pretty happy here and have raised 4 kids in this area.

[jluv]

I will say this - I liked Arlington and defended it for a long time until I got out more and spent time in other places. It's better than the bad parts of Dallas or Fort Worth, Irving, etc. It's got a lot to do, and it's right in the middle of the metroplex. And I'm a Tarrant County guy; I hate going East of the airport. But shit, compared to Grapevine, Southlake, Colleyville, or even the Northeastern parts of HEB, going back to/through Arlington is like a little tour through the hood. I do it every single day. But I'm bitter, perhaps. In the big picture, the whole metroplex sucks, and Texas is not my favorite state. I'm up out this bitch in about 6 months.